Chapter 56

Chapter 56 – The End Process (1)

“Fortunately, it seems there are no more of them popping up.”

Having already been in a similar situation before, I had the spirits of wind and earth search the area as thoroughly as possible. For now, I didn’t sense any enemy presence within our range.

“Then, we will continue advancing.”

Arisa, who had a bandage wrapped around one arm due to minor abrasions from the last battle, nodded her head. The elven army, reduced in scale by half, accompanied me.

The other half remained behind to defend the city in case of any unforeseen circumstances. Although our forces were divided, thanks to the significant number of enemies we had defeated in the previous fight, there was hardly any obstruction.

‘The aura is growing more intense. This disgusting energy.’

It was the energy of destruction aiming to annihilate the world. For me, who empathized with the spirits living in nature, it was a force that was fundamentally opposed to my existence, and it was being unleashed right ahead of us.

“Look over there!”

Finally, the entity emerged. The massive gate radiated that thick and gloomy energy, rotting the ground, parching the air, and killing all living things above it.

The stark contrast between the blackened dead area and the surrounding landscape, which still retained some freshness, was undeniable.

“There they are. The Dark Elves!”

In front of us, the Dark Elves who had survived the previous battle were preparing their desperate resistance. Having already become puppets controlled by that erosion, the Dark Elves lost their reason and, upon seeing us, began charging at us with weapons drawn.

“There’s no saving them. Let’s fight.”

I engaged in battle with the resisting Dark Elves alongside the elves. It was already too late to recover them with my powers, both for the captive one and the other Dark Elves.

Even in a berserk state, we had the advantage in numbers. The Dark Elves were pierced by the arrows of the elves and fell to the ground, cut down by spears and blades.

There was no need for me to exhaust my strength to get involved. Instead, I intended to use the energy I conserved to close that horrifying hellish gate.

“I know that the High Elf saved Eluria, who was changing due to the curse. But can you truly close that hole?”

“I’m not sure either. So we have to try.”

Arisa indicated the erosion with a tense expression. It was clearly larger and more formidable than the erosion that had appeared in the Goblin’s nest.

But I too had grown considerably since then. I had met with the wind spirits and had accepted a far greater amount of power through the bond I had strengthened, which had more than doubled.

Today was the day to bear the fruit of that effort.

“Let’s get to work. Lend me your strength.”

I summoned the spirits and slowly walked towards the site of erosion. It was impossible to do this with just my power; the spirits needed to pour all of their strength into it as well.

Of course, this task was a matter of life and death for the spirits, so there was no way they would refuse my request.

“Everyone, step back!”

The elves, realizing they had no more role to play, nervously stepped back to watch what I was about to do.

At this moment, it was something only I could do. With the power I had carried for ages, I would purify this curse, which was also a relic from ancient times.

“Ugh…”

As the opposing powers clashed, the closer I got, the more powerful rebuff I felt pushing me away. Just getting close was enough to cost me energy.

However, this reaction also indicated that the power I possessed was undoubtedly lethal.

‘Disperse quietly.’

As I stretched out my hand towards the black gate, I gritted my teeth and endured the backlash. At the same time, the earth spirits shook the ground, and the wind spirits unleashed a fierce gust, pouring out their fury.

[…]

‘What is this!’

During that process, I opened my eyes wide to witness a breathtaking spectacle that seemed like an illusion. It was a sight completely different from the black darkness I had just been observing.

“The Earthlings ultimately failed to conquer the tower. The tower will collapse… and the sealed apocalypse will begin.”

The guide of the tower, resembling a pale mannequin, stood in front of the crumbling tower, muttering in a daze, something that anyone entering would inevitably see.

Right after that, its body shattered into pieces, and a massive darkness began to surge forth from behind it. It was as if the tower had been sealing them, and now they poured out like sewage from a hole-ridden gutter.

In an instant, they started to cover the world. What I saw in that fleeting moment might have been all of it. Perhaps these beings were the creatures from the tower that heralded the end of the Mythical Era.

“Isilia!”

Arisa was shaking me, trying to bring me back to my senses. As I looked around blankly, I saw the clean surroundings devoid of anything and couldn’t help but smile faintly.

“What happened to the erosion?”

“It… it vanished. The High Elf purified it!”

When I asked just in case, she pointed to the now-blackened ground with a voice struggling to contain her joy. The land remained, but the hellish gate that had been there was definitely gone.

“I’m fine. I didn’t even use all my strength; I must have just seen an illusion.”

I stood up on my own, refusing Arisa’s help. The confusion was brief, and the dizziness faded quickly. I was left wondering if the vision I experienced was real or just a figment of my imagination.

“Let’s head back. There’s nothing left around here anymore.”

“This land will be hard to revive.”

She looked at the land with a sad expression.

The dead land could not return. When I asked the earth spirit about it, it said that far greater power was required to resurrect a land where even the spirits could not apply their powers.

“No. There might still be hope.”

It was then that one of the elven warriors spoke up. Arisa looked at him with surprised eyes.

“It should be possible with the power of the World Tree.”

“What are you talking about? The last World Tree disappeared over 3,000 years ago. Why are you bringing up something so old now… Ah.”

Arisa, who had flinched at the mention of the World Tree, smiled wryly, but then quickly fell silent with a thought, glancing at me.

“The World Tree, huh? I suppose I might want to hear about how the last remaining World Tree came to vanish.”

It was a name I had heard in passing when I was listening to rumors about the elves. I chuckled and requested an explanation.

“You probably already know, but the World Tree has been a symbol of the elves alongside the High Elves since ancient times. Only the High Elves could care for the World Tree and commune with its essence. However, when the High Elves vanished, the last World Tree could not pass on its lineage and eventually faded away.”

On the way back to the elven city, Arisa shared the story of the World Tree as I had asked. It was, like the tales of the High Elves, a history that was almost legendary.

Some elves claimed that if they were to employ the World Tree’s energy, they could stand against the erosion.

“But how can we revive something that went extinct 3,000 years ago?”

“Well, we… we don’t really…”

When I purely asked out of curiosity, Arisa looked at me as if to say, “Then how did you return after a thousand years?”

Left without anything to say, I shut my mouth. The truth was that I didn’t even know exactly what had happened to me.

“Regardless, it’s fortunate that we managed to stop the erosion before it grew larger. Had we hesitated, all our kind could have been slaughtered by the wicked enemies, and this area would have completely rotted away.”

Elnar, who had been waiting for us, seemed to have rested a bit and regained color in his face. He joyfully welcomed us and laughed broadly when I mentioned that we had completely resolved the erosion.

“Dead land and the World Tree.”

Then, upon hearing about the topic we had just been discussing, his expression hardened. Unexpectedly, Elder Elnar seemed to know something.

“While I’m not sure, there are said to be artifacts known as the seeds of the World Tree among the elves of Deia, which is reported to be the last World Tree’s previous region.”

“Is that really true, Elder?!”

“I’m not really sure. I only heard about it long ago. Until now, I simply regarded it as a meaningless old relic. Regardless, there aren’t any High Elves to sprout that seed.”

With a serious expression, Elnar shook his head at the greatly surprised Arisa. It seemed he felt it wasn’t yet time to get overly excited.

“You think I could do that?”

“I’m not sure. Don’t you know, Isilia?”

I pointed to myself in response to the questioning gazes of the elves, but they instead posed questions back to me. At that question, I found myself speechless. I didn’t know either.

“F-For now, I need to inform my external allies about what I learned today. Let’s talk again then.”

I shook my head and ended the conversation for now. It was time for me to relay the news of the erosion to my allies.